1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a cleaning unit comprising an image support member cleaning member, such as a blade, that will come into contact with an image support member on which an image is formed with liquid developer, and remove liquid developer attached to the image support member, and an image forming device comprising the same. In particular, the present invention relates to a technology for removing liquid developer attached to the image support member cleaning member.
2. Background Information
A member such as a cleaning blade that contacts with an image support member such as a photosensitive drum and removes liquid developer attached to the image support member is provided in a so-called wet image forming device typified by a copying machine and a printer that perform image formation with liquid developer.
In addition, liquid developer attached to the cleaning blade and the like is removed by another member. For example, Japan Patent Application Publication JP-A-2001-296780 discloses a technology for removing liquid developer attached to a cleaning blade that is used for removing liquid developer from an image support member (i.e., photosensitive drum) by a sponge roller, a brush roller, and the like.
However, if liquid developer removed from the cleaning blade accumulates on a sponge roller or a brush roller used to clean the cleaning blade, the cleaning efficiency of the sponge roller and the brush roller will decrease. Therefore, the cleaning blade will not be sufficiently cleaned. Accordingly, the cleaning efficiency of the image support member via the cleaning blade will decrease, and this will result in an adverse effect on, for example, the quality of the images produced.
In view of the above, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art from this disclosure that there exists a need for an improved cleaning unit that can sufficiently remove liquid developer attached to an image support member cleaning member that is configured to clean an image support member such as a photosensitive drum, and an image forming device comprising the same. This invention addresses this need in the art as well as other needs, which will become apparent to those skilled in the art from this disclosure.